Family’s Home Raided over Facebook Photo of Child’s Rifle

New popular disclaimer: Searched for this story using the search feature, looked at the new story list, looked at the recent posts list, and did not
find this listed anywhere. If it got posted before I had time to fill out a proper thread OP, I apologize now.

“Someone called family services about the photo,” said Evan Nappen, an attorney representing Shawn Moore. “It led to an incredible,
heavy-handed raid on his house. They wanted to see his gun safe, his guns and search his house. They even threatened to take his kids.” Moore was
not arrested or charged.

I guess it doesn't matter that Sean Moore "is a certified firearms instructor for the National Rifle Association, an NRA range safety officer and a
New Jersey hunter education instructor". Th photo posted even shows the kid with his finger "welded" to the frame of the rifle, and NOT on the
trigger, as is correct for safety.

With his attorney on speaker phone, Moore instructed the officers to leave his home. “I was told I was being unreasonable and that I was acting
suspicious because I wouldn’t open my safe,” Moore wrote on the Delaware Open Carry website. “They told me they were going to get a search
warrant. I told them to go ahead.”

IMO, the most telling item here is this, spoken by Dept. of Children and Families spokesperson, Kristen Brown:

the person who reported the false allegations of abuse cannot be held liable

In the end, however, he stood up for his rights, professionally and not in an antagonistic manner, and they left with no charges filed. This is how
the law is supposed to work, however, for a police officer to demand you forfeit your rights is wrong on so many levels here....stop the madness
folks, and lets all think before we react out of fear. FEAR is what will be our downfall if we do not stop this now.

Really? This kid is licensed, passed his safety course is a hunter, and is proud of that accomplishment, as is his father. The fact that someone is
afraid of guns, and clearly overreacted (perhaps a chat or context on the photo would have eased tensions before it was FALSELY reported) would be
smarter?

Since when does being proud of one's accomplishments and exercising your Constitutional Rights of free speech become wrong and something to hide in
the shows over?

Ill advised in what way? A man who legally bought his son a rifle and the boy was proudly displaying his birthday present. It was not a threatening
photo, no, "I've got my assault rifle so you better watch out". Why would police or Child Services have cause to raid his house and threaten him
and his children? This was plainly over reaction by cops and DFS.
Too bad the informer can't be held liable. People should have to back up their accusations with fact, not fear mongering.

Originally posted by Doodle19815
I wonder how it would have gone if the guy didn't have all those shiny credentials and his lawyer on the phone?

edit on 20-3-2013 by
Doodle19815 because: (no reason given)

I believe we all already know, the familg dog shot, daughter burned by flashbang, father and son beaten unconscious, and then one of them shot for
resisting arrest, even though you are aloud under tye law to protect yourself, uo to and including taking an officers life, while resisting unlawful
detention, thanks for that one SCOTUS.

All the while, they woukd have confiscated all his weapons, put his kids in foster care, and he would have lost hos job and his house, and then they
woukd demand he pay for his own lawyer after they guarantee he is not able to do so.

You know, the regular police axtion tactics, every situation is a swat situation these days.

The state will look into any reports of abuse. yea well tell that to the kids who end up dead cuz the state drops the ball all the time and takes away
kids who need not to be, while the ones who needed to be helped are left on their own. What lovely ammo for the anti-gun agenda if any of this abuse
was true.. This is why I will never show any pics or tell anyone about any weapons I do or do not own.

This whole story is afire with buzzwords and half truths and is a non issue.
There is nothing for this man to sue over.
There were officers investigating an abuse claim, abuse comes in many flavors nowadays.
Officers asked to search, which is their right to do so.
Father said take a flying @@@@, which is his right as well.
No laws, rules or rights were harmed in the making of this story, except for maybe some false reporting.
This should be the police officers next stop, the bad claimant.

ok...let's see.... national attention focused on guns, especially assault rifles, scores of reported cases throughout america of kids bringing guns to
school, media attention for the last few months on guns and shootings, actual school shootings taking place......so what to do???...i know!, i
know!...i'll put a photo of my son, in camo, holding an assault rifle, on facebook.....yeah that's it...no problem there
doesn't anyone think ahead anymore?...and yeah...you should be allowed to, but using a little common sense, AND NOT putting his picture up on facebook
would have been more prudent.

The "alledged" informant does nt have to be named.....
Doesnt this alone strike you as an open door for police abuse?
The police then do not need complaint as they can make up whatever story they like....
The idea that police can demand unconstitutionally to search or anything else is worth a SCOTUS case....
What were the police doing searching the home without a warrant in the first place??
This seems hokey to me...likea set up of the NRA or whatever....

Originally posted by jimmyx
ok...let's see.... national attention focused on guns, especially assault rifles, scores of cases throughout america of kids bring guns to school,
actual school shootings taking place......so what to do???...i'll put a photo of my son, in camo, holding an assault rifle, on facebook.....yeah
that's it...no problem there
doesn't anyone think ahead anymore?...and yeah...you should be allowed to, but using a little common sense, AND NOT putting his picture up on
facebook would have been more prudent.

Prudent?

There is absolutely NO reason for any of this to have happened because a person posted a photo that is perfectly legal.
CARS ARE DANGEROUS. Should we raid every house that has a new young driver posing with their new car in a pic on Facebook??

Don't take a photo of your child posing with a deer that they killed.... Someone might conjure up an image of a gun in their head FFS, and then
you'll get raided!

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